Yemen

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Republic of Yemen
Flag Coat of arms
Motto: "Allah, al-Watan, at-Thawra, al-Wehda" "God, Nation, Revolution, Unity"
Anthem: United Republic
Capital (and largest city)		San‘a’ 15.3547°′N, 44.2067°′E
Official languages		Arabic
Demonym		Yemeni, Yemenite
Government		Republic
-	President	Ali Abdullah Saleh
-	Prime Minister	Ali Mohammed Mujur
Establishment
-	Unification	May 22, 1990
Area
-	Total	527,968 km² (49th) 203,849 sq mi
-	Water (%)	negligible
Population
-	July 2008 estimate	23,013,376[3] (51st)
-	July 2007 census	22,230,531
-	Density	42/km² (160th) 109/sq mi
GDP (PPP)		2007 estimate
-	Total	$52.61 billion (81st)
-	Per capita	$2,400 (2007 est.) (132nd)
HDI (2007)		▲ 0.508 (medium) (153rd)
Currency		Yemeni rial $1 = 198.13 Rials (YER)
Time zone		(UTC+3)
Internet TLD		.ye
Calling code		+967

Yemen (Arabic: اليَمَن al-Yaman), officially the Republic of Yemen (Arabic: الجمهورية اليمنية al-Jumhuuriyya al-Yamaniyya) is a Middle Eastern country located on the Arabian Peninsula in Southwest Asia. With a population of more than 20 million people, Yemen is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the North, the Red Sea to the West, the Arabian Sea and Gulf of Aden to the South, and Oman to the east. Yemen's territory includes over 200 islands, the largest of which is Socotra, about 415 kilometres (259 miles) to the south of Yemen, off the coast of Somalia. Yemen is the only republic on the Arabian Peninsula.

History

Main article: History of Yemen

The land of Yemen is one of the oldest centers of civilization in the world. Between 2200 BC and the sixth century AD, it was part of the Sabaean, Awsanian, Minaean, Qatabanian, Hadhramawtian, Himyarite, and some other kingdoms, which controlled the lucrative spice trade. It was known to the ancient Romans as Arabia Felix ("Happy Arabia") because of the riches its trade generated. Augustus Caesar attempted to annex it, but the expedition failed. The Ethiopian Kingdom of Aksum annexed it by around 520, and it was subsequently taken by the Sassanids Persians around 570.

In the 3rd century and again in the late sixth and early seventh century, many Sabaean and Himyarite people migrated out of the land of Yemen following the destructions of the Ma'rib Dam (sadd Ma'rib) and migrated to North Africa and the northern part of the Arabian Peninsula. In the 7th century, Islamic caliphs began to exert control over the area. After the caliphate broke up, the former North Yemen came under the control of imams of various dynasties usually of the Zaidi sect, who established a theocratic political structure that survived until modern times. Egyptian Sunni caliphs occupied much of North Yemen throughout the eleventh century. By the sixteenth century and again in the nineteenth century, north Yemen was part of the Ottoman Empire, and during several periods its imams exerted control over south Yemen.

In 1839, the British occupied the port of Aden and established it as a colony in September of that year. They also set up a zone of loose alliances (known as protectorates) around Aden to act as a protective buffer. North Yemen became independent of the Ottoman Empire in 1918 and became a republic in 1962. In 1967, the British withdrew and gave back Aden to Yemen due to the extreme pressure of battles with the North and its Egyptian allies. After the British withdrawal, this area became known as South Yemen. The two countries were formally united as the Republic of Yemen on May 22, 1990.

Politics

Main article: Politics of Yemen

Yemen is a republic with a bicameral legislature. Under the constitution, an elected president, an elected 301-seat House of Representatives, and an appointed 111-member Shura Council share power. The president is head of state, and the prime minister is head of government. The constitution provides that the president be elected by popular vote from at least two candidates endorsed by at least fifteen members of the Parliament. The prime minister, in turn, is appointed by the president and must be approved by two thirds of the Parliament. The presidential term of office is seven years, and the parliamentary term of elected office is six years. Suffrage is universal for people age 18 and older.

President Ali Abdullah Saleh became the first elected President in reunified Yemen in 1999 (though he had been President of unified Yemen since 1990 and President of North Yemen since 1978). After an initial reluctance to run once more, he was re-elected to office in September of 2006. Saleh's victory was marked by an election that international observers judged to be generally "free and fair".^[1] Popular demonstrations and editorials of support in major papers helped change his mind to run again. In April 2003, parliamentary elections were held, and the General People's Congress (GPC) maintained an absolute majority. There was a marked decrease from previous years in election-related violence. However, there were some problems with underage voting, confiscation of ballot boxes, voter intimidation, and election-related violence.^{[citations needed]}

The constitution calls for an independent judiciary. The former northern and southern legal codes have been unified. The legal system includes separate commercial courts and a Supreme Court based in Sana'a. Since the country is an Islamic state, the Islamic Law (Sharia) is the main source for laws. Indeed, many court cases are debated by the religious basis of the laws. For this reason, many judges are religious scholars as well as legal authorities. Unlike Saudi Arabia and other Islamic states, however, the consumption of alcohol by non-Muslims is tolerated, and the mild stimulant qat is chewed by Yemenis of all strata of society, despite being banned or frowned upon by other Muslim countries and groups.

Governorates and districts

Please help improve this section by expanding it. Further information might be found on the talk page or at requests for expansion. (June 2008)

Main articles: Governorates of Yemen and Districts of Yemen

Further information: Historic Governorates of Yemen and List of cities in Yemen

As of February 2004, Yemen is divided into twenty governorates (muhafazah) and one municipality.^[2] The population of each governorate is listed in the table below.

Division	Capital City	Pop (2004) [3]	Key
'Adan	Aden	589,419	1
'Amran	'Amran	877,786	2
Abyan	Zinjibar	433,819	3
Ad Dali		470,564	4
Al Bayda'	Al Bayda	577,369	5
Al Hudaydah	Al Hudaydah	2,157,552	6
Al Jawf	Al Jawf	443,797	7
Al Mahrah	Al Ghaydah	88,594	8
Al Mahwit	Al Mahwit	494,557	9
Amanat Al Asimah	Sanaa	1,747,834	10
Dhamar	Dhamar	1,330,108	11
Hadramaut	Al Mukalla	1,028,556	12
Hajjah	Hajjah	1,479,568	13
Ibb	Ibb	2,131,861	14
Lahij	Lahij	722,694	15
Ma'rib	Ma'rib	238,522	16
Raymah		394,448	17
Sa'dah	Sa`dah	695,033	18
Sana'a	San`a'	919,215	19
Shabwah	`Ataq	470,440	20
Ta'izz	Ta`izz	2,393,425	21

The governorates are subdivided into 333 districts (muderiah), which are subdivided into 2,210 sub-districts, and then into 38,284 villages (as of 2001).

Before 1990, Yemen existed as two separate entities. For more information, see Historic Governorates of Yemen.

Geography

Main article: Geography of Yemen

Yemen is in the Middle East, in the south of the Arabian Peninsula, bordering the Arabian Sea, Gulf of Aden, and Red Sea, west of Oman and south of Saudi Arabia.

A number of Red Sea islands, including the Hanish Islands, Kamaran and Perim, as well as Socotra in the Arabian Sea belong to Yemen. Many of the islands are volcanic; for example Jabal al-Tair had a volcanic eruption in 2007 and before that in 1883.

At 527,970 km² (203,837 sq mi), Yemen is the world's 49th-largest country (after France). It is comparable in size to Thailand, and somewhat larger than the U.S. state of California. Yemen is situated at